Simon has become the latest brave soul to don breathing equipment and plunge into the seething cesspit of tennis prize money equality. His belief is there is a little too much of that around in grand slams, and that men should be getting more for their efforts.

When he popped the ball lamely into the net to signal defeat against Xavier Malisse at Wimbledon on Thursday afternoon, Gilles Simon walked away from the All England Club with £23,125 in his kitbag, his reward for losing in the second round.

Much to his chagrin, the amount would have been the same had his name ended in ‘-ova’, he had been wearing a skirt and defeat had come in under an hour rather than the two and a half it took Malisse.

But after a 7-6 (7-3), 6-7 (3-7), 6-0 win over Bulgaria’s Tsvetana Pironkova, Sharapova, the women’s No1 seed, winner of 27 titles and with career earnings of £13.5million, delivered a withering put-down.

“No matter what anyone says, or the criticisms that we get, I’m sure there are a few more people that watch my matches than his,” said Sharapova, who argued that women had fought long and hard for equal status.

“It was a big challenge and nobody supported us,” she said. “It’s been a few years since we have gotten that. We’re all really proud of it.”

Williams, who easily beat Hungarian qualifier Melinda Czink 6-1, 6-4 was just as dismissive. “We fought for years with Billie Jean King, and Venus as well, really set the pattern on what we should do,” she said.

“I started playing tennis at two years old. I’m sure he started when he was two years old, as well. I worked just as hard as he did. Anyway, Maria’s way hotter than he is.”

Simon first publicly addressed the subject when it was announced he was to join the executive of the Association of Tennis Professionals earlier in the first week of the tournament.

Speaking out on this issue just before giving an utterly unconvincing display on Court Three may be the very definition of being a hostage to fortune. But the Frenchman was unrepentant in defeat.

“My point was that I have the feeling that men’s tennis is actually more interesting than women’s tennis,” he said after his eviction.

“As in any business, you just have to be paid just about that. Just look at you media. At the moment you give four pages to the men’s game to every one for the women's.

When asked if he had personally delivered entertainment on Court Three in a 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 defeat, he said: “I don’t care, it’s a general thing.

"The 128 male players think like me, that’s for sure. Just ask them.”

Inevitably, many of them were asked. But no-one was prepared publicly to back Simon. Malisse explained that he had got in enough trouble in the past, while Roger Federer sidestepped the query.